Senior Tories in the shires are in open revolt ahead of the May council elections after George Osborne paved the way for further punishing cuts that are likely to lead to the closure of more local libraries, parks and leisure centres.

A widening rift between Conservative-run local authorities and ministers in central government, who are seen by many shire Tories as part of a remote metropolitan elite, now threatens to sour the Conservatives’ local election effort as council leaders lay plans to blame central government for what many expect to be heavy losses on 2 May.

The Conservative chair of the Local Government Association, Sir Merrick Cockell, told the Observer that a lack of clarity about when and how the unwelcome future budget reductions would fall was leaving local authorities – already hit by cuts of more than 30% since 2010 – with insufficient time to plan for yet another round of austerity.